Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness
by Michael Cao
Summary: Harry finds about some of Dumbledore's manipulations during 4th year and gets banished from Gryffindor. He decides to go to America for a year for a break from Britain, with the help of newly found allies and along with his girlfriend. Super!Political!Independent!Smart!Harry, Manip. but Good Dumbledore, Manip!Weasleys. A unique take on the Manipulative Dumbledore storyline.
1. The Triwizard Tournament

A/N- Happy New Year! It has been an exciting 2014, and I made my first foray into the world of Fanfiction. Now, to commemorate New Years, I have come out with yet another story that I may continue in the future. Please Follow, Favorite, and Review!

Life, Liberty, and Happiness

Chapter 1- The Triwizard Tournament

Taken from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire:

"_At long last, the golden plates returned to their original spotless state; there was a sharp upswing in the level of noise within the Hall, which died away almost instantly as Dumbledore got to his feet. On either side of him, Professor Karkaroff and Madame Maxime looked as tense and expectant as anyone. Ludo Bagman was beaming and winking at various students. Mr. Crouch, however, looked quite uninterested, almost bored._

_"Well, the goblet is almost ready to make its decision," said Dumbledore. "I estimate that it requires one more minute. Now, when the champions' names are called, I would ask them please to come up to the top of the Hall, walk along the staff table, and go through into the next chamber" - he indicated the door behind the staff table - "where they will be receiving their first instructions."_

_He took out his wand and gave a great sweeping wave with it; at once, all the candles except those inside the carved pumpkins were extinguished, plunging them into a state of semidarkness. The Goblet of Fire now shone more brightly than anything in the whole Hall, the sparkling bright, bluey-whiteness of the flames almost painful on the eyes._

_Everyone watched, waiting. . . . A few people kept checking their watches. . ._

_"Any second," Lee Jordan whispered, two seats away from Harry._

_The flames inside the goblet turned suddenly red again. Sparks began to fly from it._

_Next moment, a tongue of flame shot into the air, a charred piece of parchment fluttered out of it - the whole room gasped._

_Dumbledore caught the piece of parchment and held it at arm's length, so that he could read it by the light of the flames, which had turned back to blue-white._

_"The champion for Durmstrang," he read, in a strong, clear voice, "will be Viktor Krum."_

_"No surprises there!" yelled Ron as a storm of applause and cheering swept the Hall._

_Harry saw Viktor Krum rise from the Slytherin table and slouch up toward Dumbledore; he turned right, walked along the staff table, and disappeared through the door into the next chamber._

_"Bravo, Viktor!" boomed Karkaroff, so loudly that everyone could hear him, even over all the applause. "Knew you had it in you!"_

_The clapping and chatting died down. Now everyone's attention was focused again on the goblet, which, seconds later, turned red once more. A second piece of parchment shot out of it, propelled by the flames._

_"The champion for Beauxbatons," said Dumbledore, "is Fleur Delacour!"_

_"It's her, Ron!" Harry shouted as the girl who so resembled a veela got gracefully to her feet, shook back her sheet of silvery blonde hair, and swept up between the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables._

_"Oh look, they're all disappointed," Hermione said over the noise, nodding toward the remainder of the Beauxbatons party. "Disappointed" was a bit of an understatement, Harry thought. Two of the girls who had not been selected had dissolved into tears and were sobbing with their heads on their arms._

_When Fleur Delacour too had vanished into the side chamber, silence fell again, but this time it was a silence so stiff with excitement you could almost taste it. The Hogwarts champion next..._

_And the Goblet of Fire turned red once more; sparks showered out of it; the tongue of flame shot high into the air, and from its tip Dumbledore pulled the third piece of parchment._

_"The Hogwarts champion," he called, "is Cedric Diggory!"_

_"No! " said Ron loudly, but nobody heard him except Harry; the uproar from the next table was too great. Every single Hufflepuff had jumped to his or her feet, screaming and stamping, as Cedric made his way past them, grinning broadly, and headed off toward the chamber behind the teachers' table. Indeed, the applause for Cedric went on so long that it was some time before Dumbledore could make himself heard again._

_"Excellent!" Dumbledore called happily as at last the tumult died down. "Well, we now have our three champions. I am sure I can count upon all of you, including the remaining students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, to give your champions every ounce of support you can muster. By cheering your champion on, you will contribute in a very real -"_

_But Dumbledore suddenly stopped speaking, and it was apparent to everybody what had distracted him._

_The fire in the goblet had just turned red again. Sparks were flying out of it. A long flame shot suddenly into the air, and borne upon it was another piece of parchment._

_Automatically, it seemed, Dumbledore reached out a long hand and seized the parchment. He held it out and stared at the name written upon it. There was a long pause, during which Dumbledore stared at the slip in his hands, and everyone in the room stared at Dumbledore. And then Dumbledore cleared his throat and read out - "Harry Potter.""_

Harry sat in an empty classroom stewing. It was 10 at night, and he could not get into Gryffindor Tower. Ron and Hermione had betrayed him. All of Gryffindor except Neville and possibly a few others had betrayed him.

Flashback:

Harry was surprised that he was at the Fat Lady already. He had been preoccupied thinking about why anyone would put his name in. He ignored the Fat Lady's attempts at conversation and said, "Balderdash". The Fat Lady opened, and he stepped in to a silent common room. As he stepped inside, the Head Boy, Kenneth Towler, stepped up.

"Potter, did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire?" he asked.

"No, I didn't" Harry answered honestly.

"He's lying!" shouted many in the crowd.

Towler shook his head. "Let us discuss this like mature people, not like a bunch of idiots would", he told everyone. Then he turned back to Harry. "Because many in Gryffindor accused you of cheating, I called a House meeting, as is my right as Lord over Gryffindor House. This meeting was called to determine our stance on this issue. Unfortunately, many in our House called for banishing you from this house, and I cannot do anything, as we have to vote on the matter because many people seconded the motion."

He then turned back to the crowd. "All in favor of banishing Harry Potter from Gryffindor House?"

Many in the crowd raised their hands, by the looks of it, a clear majority. Towler turned to him and quietly said, "For what it's worth, I'm sorry." Then he raised his voice and said, "Harry Potter, I, Kenneth Towler, under my authority as Lord over Gryffindor House and Head Boy of Hogwarts, do hereby banish you from Gryffindor House until such time as there is a unanimous vote to reinstate you. You shall remain houseless unless there is such a vote or until another House votes to take you in as one of theirs. So mote it be!"

"You can go collect your things now; you will have to find a place to live in and a table to eat at until you are not Houseless. Being Houseless is the highest dishonor, and no Gryffindor may speak or make contact with you unless given permission by myself or another Prefect. You are also banned from identifying yourself as a Gryffindor or wearing Gryffindor uniforms. The portrait password will be changed, and you will be banned from entering Gryffindor House. You are to vacate your dorm in half an hour. Good luck." With that, he turned away and started to speak to the assembled Gryffindors about how they would regret doing this and about other stuff.

End Flashback

Harry had moved his stuff to this classroom, an abandoned Transfiguration classroom on the fifth floor. He had asked Dobby to get a makeshift cot for the night, and he would figure out everything in the morning. He would see what McGonagall and Dumbledore said about all of this, if they even cared. Dumbledore certainly didn't seem to care about his name coming out of the Goblet. Harry sighed. Ever since he had started to go over his life a bit more, he had found more and more unexplainable things. Things such as, how did three second years find out the huge monster in the Chamber was a basilisk when a school of teachers couldn't? Luckily, he had explored the Chamber earlier this year and had discovered that basilisks eroded slowly. He'd need it for the Tournament. Well, at least the skin. He was prepared to use his entire vault to keep himself alive, and that meant commissioning the finest basilisk skin armor available. He had originally wanted to sell the basilisk, but he could use the skin and venom. Just another of the things the "great" Albus Dumbledore had not told him.

He pushed those thoughts away. An owl was perched on the window. He walked over and opened the window, letting the regal eagle owl swoop inside, do a few circles, and then settle on his shoulder, offering him the scroll tied on its leg. Harry was wary that this might be a trap. Even so, he opened it, curious as to who would be owling him.

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_ We at Greengrass, Tyson, and Associates have never met you, but we have been the solicitors for the Potters for centuries. We have been trying to contact you for the past four years, however, your mail has been intercepted by one Albus Dumbledore in his role as your Magical Guardian. Only now, upon your emancipation by the Ministry, have we been able to contact you. The mail ward around you has presumably been dropped, as we are able to send owls to you now, whereas formerly owls would always go to the Ministry mail room._

_ We have contacted you today because you have been emancipated by Bartemius Crouch Sr, Ludovic Bagman, Albus Dumbledore, Olympe Maxime, and Igor Karkaroff. We received notification of this from Gringotts at 7:04 PM, one minute after you were emancipated. We immediately tried to contact you, and as you can see, we were successful. We request a meeting with you sometime in November, on a date of your choosing. We can meet you anywhere, be it in Hogsmeade or our offices or Hogwarts. Please owl us with an acceptable time and place, and we shall confirm it with you. Peter Tyson will be your solicitor, as he is our youngest solicitor, and he is experienced in matters regarding minors and familial law. His family has also been the Potters' solicitors for centuries, back to when William Potter first retained us in 1546. _

_There are some things which cannot be discussed by unsecured owl, as it is private and requires a confidential environment to discuss it in. Thus, your solicitor will be discussing it with you at the meeting. Thank you for continuing to use our firm's services. We hope to meet with you soon._

_Sincerely,_

_Penelope Clearwater_

_Personal Secretary to Lord Cyrus Greengrass, Head of Greengrass, Tyson, and Associates_

_P.S. Remember me Harry? I was Percy's former girlfriend. Note the former. I got fed up with his pompousness and ditched him. Just to let you know, I don't think you put your name in; you're a better kid than that. Just shoot off an owl to me if you need anything._

_-Penelope_

Harry put the letter down, happy. His family's solicitors had finally made contact, and he was starting to believe that they didn't have any, even though the Potters were supposedly an old pureblood family. He had been hoping for something like this ever since Neville let slip that all old pureblood families had solicitors and that the Potters should too. Of course, after that, Neville had only been too happy to begin teaching him basic pureblood customs and etiquette. Neville had really been a real help over the past few months, he thought.

He turned to the next portion of the letter. Lord? If he was right, the Wizarding nobility was similar to the Muggle version, where important and old families were noble. Due to the population difference, however, there might be more or less nobles in the magical world. He shrugged. On to the next part. He was emancipated? Well, that solved a lot of problems with one decision, even if it was technically Dumbledore who both caused the problems and who unintentionally solved them. That was ironic. Wait, there was a mail ward around him? That explained why he never got any fan mail. He shrugged. He was better off without fan mail, one of the few things he had learned from Lockhart.

Now, on to the meeting thing. The next Hogsmeade weekend was November 5th and 6th, just 5 days away. He could get away with meeting his solicitors, seeing as how he was being shunned by all the houses now. He scribbled out a note to Penelope thanking her for her note and telling her that he could meet Mr. Tyson on the 5th at around 12 in the Three Broomsticks. He also noted that he would pay for lunch, as was proper for a meeting. He sent toe note away with the eagle owl and yawned. It had been a really long day. Had it just been a few hours earlier that he was joking around with Ron and Hermione about his name being in the Goblet?

He thought about all of this as he prepared for bed, and then had a 'connect the dots' moment where he realized something. Quickly scribbling it down on a piece of parchment, he slipped into bed and was asleep within a minute.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

On Friday, before breakfast, he stopped by McGonagall's office to talk with her. He had gotten tired of the glares and insults directed towards him whenever he had class. Unfortunately, even though he was still sleeping in the classroom, he couldn't escape the Gryffindors during meals and classes. Plus, they had told him he had to stop associating with Gryffindor House or he would be forced to. Because of this, he had made the choice to go to McGonagall and see what his choices were. He knocked on the door. A bleary-eyed McGonagall wearing a tartan bathrobe answered the door.

"Yes… Mr. Potter? To what do I owe the pleasure of this early visit?" McGonagall asked.

"Professor, I need to talk to you, it's very urgent." Harry answered.

"Very well then. Take a seat while I go change my attire." With that, she disappeared back into her quarters, and Harry sat down. Even though he was in Gryffindor, he had only been in this office a few times during his time at Hogwarts. He didn't know whether that was a good thing or a bad thing, as Neville had told him that all First Years were supposed to meet their Head of House for a one-on-one meeting sometime in September. He hadn't gotten that meeting, unfortunately. Another nail in Dumbledore's coffin.

A few minutes later, McGonagall stepped out, dressed in her normal black robes. She sat down at her desk and reached for a tin of cookies. "Have a biscuit", she said, tossing them towards him.

Harry had his suspicions, but he doubted McGonagall would put potions in something she herself ate out of. After all, he had found potions in his breakfast every morning, but McGonagall's biscuits? That was more than a little farfetched. He shrugged and took a biscuit. Eating it he stated, "Professor, I came so early because of one thing: I was banished from Gryffindor House late Monday evening. Is there anything you can do?"

McGonagall was astonished. Mainly, only older students were even considered for banishment, and only if they had done something truly heinous. To hear that Harry had been banished was just incomprehensible. So, of course, she asked a question. "Why did they banish you? Only people who have done something truly heinous are ever banished!"

Harry laughed bitterly. "They banished me because, in their words, I'm the next dark lord since I can speak Parseltongue, I somehow saved Buckbeak the Hippogriff last year, I was allegedly turned to the Dark by Sirius Black last year, and I used Dark magic to get my name into the Goblet of Fire. Even if those things were true, which they aren't, the Headmaster would have expelled me by now for such a record. I didn't even get to prove I didn't do any of those things, thanks to the sheep in Gryffindor!"

McGonagall was getting angry at the nerve of the Gryffindors. "Well, I cannot do anything, only the Lord over Gryffindor can, which is currently Kenneth Towler, who I appointed myself. And even he is controlled by the will of those in Gryffindor. What I can do is allow you to sleep in the guest quarters until this is cleared up, or, as much as it pains me to say this, you can ask Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw for admittance. I think you would have a better chance with Ravenclaw, as their Lady right now, Lauren Ellwood, is a very reasonable person. Or you can take it up with Patricia Stimpson, who is the Lady of Hufflepuff, if I am not mistaken. Lucian Yaxley would never accept you into Slytherin. As much as I hate to say it, you should ask Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff for admittance. Do you want me to call Professors Flitwick and Sprout?" she finished.

"Yes, please! I want to look into my options." Harry said, relieved that this was going so smoothly. "The sorting hat actually considered putting me into Ravenclaw, so that's my first choice." What he didn't mention was that this was temporary until he enacted his 'Get the Hell out of Britain' plan, which would be by June, when he could safely escape.

"Very well." McGonagall sighed as she walked over to the Floo and called Flitwick and Sprout. Needless to say, after McGonagall explained the situation, they both Flooed over immediately. The meeting started shortly after, as Harry had stated that he didn't want the Headmaster to be present.

"Well, Mr. Potter, what's this I hear about you wanting to move to Ravenclaw?" Flitwick squeaked. Professor Flitwick had always been one of Harry's favorite teachers.

Sprout objected. "Mr. Potter didn't just say Ravenclaw, he also said Hufflepuff. Personally, I think Hufflepuff would be better for him."

Harry interrupted. "My one question is, which House is more neutral? I don't want to get caught in either side's politics. Also, I want protection from both sides of the little civil war in the school, plus the professors. Which House has better protection?"

"Well, as an impartial source, I can tell you that Hufflepuff is your best bet for protection and neutrality, but only if they warm up to you. Ravenclaw is better at neutrality, as the House is made up of neutral people who don't care either way in the inter-House rivalry. I would say maybe Ravenclaw would be better overall, but Hufflepuff would be much better if they warm up to you." McGonagall stated.

Harry, who had had problems with Hufflepuffs and their loyalty in the past (Ernie Macmillan, anyone?), and had also had problems with Ravenclaws, couldn't decide. Finally, he made a decision. "I think I'll choose…"

A/N- Cliffhanger! You should be able to figure it out. Next chapter out soon, by the end of January. I need a Beta. Please PM me if interested.


	2. Revalations

Life, Liberty, and Happiness

Chapter 2- Revelations

_Previously on Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness: __Harry, who had had problems with Hufflepuffs and their loyalty in the past (Ernie Macmillan, anyone?), and had also had problems with Ravenclaws, couldn't decide. Finally, he made a decision. "I think I'll choose…"_

"..Ravenclaw" Harry finished. "No offence Professor Sprout, but I saw the way your Hufflepuffs looked at me when I 'stole' Cedric's glory during the Halloween Feast. Oh, and I've had bad experiences with them in the past. By the way, I need to prove something." He took out his wand. "I, Harry James Potter, swear on my magic and my life that I did _not_ enter my name into the Goblet of Fire before or during the Halloween Feast yesterday, nor did I convince another student to enter my name for me. I also swear that I had no knowledge that my name was in the Goblet before the drawing, only suspicions that my name may come out. So mote it be!"

The three professors had expected something like this, but they were still surprised. McGonagall spoke. "Mr. Potter, do you know what you risked in that oath? You could have at least only swore on your honor, not on your life _and _magic!"

Harry smiled. "If I swore on anything less, some would not believe me. I had to swear on my life and magic, because that is the ultimate oath; if I indeed put my name in, I would be a dead muggle right now."

There was a period of awkward silence until Flitwick took over. "If you are to be in my House, Mr. Potter, we shall have to go see Lauren Ellwood, who is the Lady of Ravenclaw right now. I believe he is in the Common Room right now, as is his custom. Shall we go?"

Harry had another question. "What is this Lord and Lady over a House thing? This is the first I've heard of it."

Flitwick explained. "It was an old tradition for there to be a Lord or Lady of a House of Hogwarts a long time ago; this tradition fell out of use around the time Dumbledore became Headmaster, as he was testing the new Prefect/Head Boy system that was started in the 1940s. Because the Triwizard Tournament has started again, we felt it prudent to see if this system would work again. This also frees up us Heads of Houses so we can devote more time for the Triwizard. Before this system was reinstated, there was a Council in each House of all the Seventh Years and other elected members that could make House decisions. Now, this system is more of a democratic oligarchy, if you will. There was an explanation of this in your Hogwarts letter; did you not read it?"

So that was why the Hogwarts letters were thicker than usual; As usual, Molly Weasley had not let them see the letters, instead getting their books and things for them while they were at the World Cup. None of them had gotten to see their letters. That proved that Molly was in cahoots with Dumbledore, planning something. He mentally resolved to get to the bottom of this. "No, I didn't; I never had a chance to read my Hogwarts letter, as I was at the World Cup. Molly Weasley got my stuff for me."

The three professors were outraged, but wisely kept quiet and mutually promised to investigate this. "Well, let us be off." Flitwick said, walking towards the Floo. "Ravenclaw Common Room!" and then a second later, "Filius Flitwick!" He went through, and Harry followed him.

They emerged in a common room that was blue and grey, and that had couches and bookshelves everywhere. This was just what Harry had expected out of Ravenclaw; a comfortable but practical common room. The common room was mainly empty except for a teenager in the corner reading a book and helping others with things occasionally. Harry correctly guessed this to be Lauren Ellwood, the 7th year Ravenclaw prefect and the Lady over Ravenclaw.

Flitwick caught her eye and beckoned her over, and she immediately came over. Flitwick quietly conversed with her in a whisper for a second, and then Flitwick announced "Let us go to a more private setting," and then he went over to the bust of Rowena Ravenclaw and tapped her diadem three times and said "Dissendium", which was the exact incantation used for the secret passageway to Honeydukes. Harry just shrugged and followed the two inside the small door that had opened adjacent to the bust.

Inside was a well-appointed room, with the expected blue and silver decorations inside. There was a long meeting table that stretched from one end of the room to the other, which could sit about 20 people. Flitwick and Ellwood both took a seat at the head of the table, and Harry took a seat as well.

Ellwood began. "Harry Potter. Professor Flitwick just told me of the situation, and I must compliment you on your choice. While switching Houses is a bit drastic, there are rules that allow it under certain circumstances, and this is one of them. What is left in your path to becoming a Ravenclaw, however, is one thing- testing to see whether you are worthy of Ravenclaw. Because we can't use the Sorting Hat, we will just do the test used in the olden days, calling upon the Ravenclaw Magick to judge you and see whether you are worthy of being a Ravenclaw. The other Houses don't do this, except Slytherin, and it is viewed as archaic and outdated. Because of that and the risk of injury or death, we need your consent. Otherwise, we will just let you take a personality test to see whether you have the traits needed. However, being judged by the Magicks makes it set in stone that you are either worthy or not worthy. What do you want to do?"

For Harry, the choice was easy. "I'll be judged by the Magicks." He stated confidently.

"OK" Ellwood said. "If you want to do that, then we can do the test now. Me and Professor Flitwick will do the ritual while you stand in that circle over there." She pointed to a circle in the back of the room with runes around it. "The ritual will not take long, but you will be tired after it. It will take its toll on your magic, and you will need to rest for the rest of the day. Get into the circle and we can do the ritual."

Harry went over and stepped into the circle with no small amount of apprehension. He stood still as the other two started the ritual.

"_Invocato Ravenclaw iudicare de veneficiis iuvenis dignum est, num in domo Ravenclaw dicimus in veneficiis discernere iuvenis revelare Ravenclaw notam in eo!" _they chanted.

Harry felt something inside him, a warm fuzzy feeling, and then a sharp pain in his head, and then he suddenly lost control over his body. Something was in his body, looking at his memories, judging him, looking at his soul. After a minute, it seemed to bump into something, and then something akin to anger came from the thing. A little but later, it exited his body, and to Harry it seemed like he would throw up.

He collapsed on the floor as a bright light shone above him and a woman's voice came out of the light. It said, "_He has been judged. He is worthy, but he has been marked with the darkest of Magicks, and his magic has been bound. He is also under the influence of potions, and his body has been abused and violated. He is worthy, but he is marked with Dark Magick. He is now no longer a Gryffindor, but a Ravenclaw. So mote it be!_"

To say that all three were shocked was an understatement. Flitwick reacted the fastest. "Mr. Potter, if you are as Ravenclaw herself says, then we must get you to the Hospital Wing so you can have your magic unblocked and the potions flushed out of your body. The one thing I am curious about is how you can even do magic if there are blocks on it. By Merlin, you should be a Squib if your magic is blocked! The only explanation is that you are so powerful that your power cannot be completely blocked, which would mean that you are at, if not above, the level of Sorcerer. Let us go."

They proceeded to use the Ravenclaw Common Room Floo to the Hospital Wing. As soon as they stepped out of the Floo, Madam Pomfrey bustled over and immediately commented, "Back again Mr. Potter? What is it this time? I swear, if you're in here one more time I'll reserve a bed just for you for the next four years."

Professor Flitwick told her, "Madam Pomfrey, Mr. Potter is in need of serious help. He is and has been under the influence of potions for a long time and most of his magic and abilities are bound. He needs to at least stay the night in your magically insulated chamber, and needs Flushing Potions and an Unbinding Ritual. Now!"

Madam Pomfrey immediately checked over Harry, then pushed him into the nearest bed, which she then levitated to the back of the Hospital Wing and into a small room, the two others following. She had Harry lay down on the bed, and then she promptly bound him to it with restraints. "Hey!" Harry protested.

"This is necessary if you want your blocks to be removed." She explained patiently. "You'll thrash around, as there is some pain involved. I'm confident that you'll survive it though."

"Ok…" Harry wasn't sure what the meaning of 'some pain' was but he would go through anything to get these damn blocks off and the potions out of his system. He wriggled in the bed, finding that the restraints were so secure that, even if he was Crucioed, he could not flail or move around.

Madam Pomfrey came back over from the potion storeroom, holding several potions. "Unfortunately, pain relieving potions will cause the ritual to not work. But, I can give you a Muggle painkiller called morphine. I have to stick a needle in you; are you OK with that?"

Harry nodded and Madam Pomfrey expertly jabbed a needle in his arm and connected the needle to an IV drip with morphine in it. "Now, you can't move the needle. If you do, I'll put you in a full body bind. OK?" she warned.

Harry just nodded. He had been in the Muggle Hospital far too many times for his liking. He was familiar with this.

"Now," Madam Pomfrey continued, "We'll prepare the ritual. The Unbinding Ritual needs three people or, for the more serious blocks, seven people. These blocks are severe enough to need seven. We need four more people, preferably of age. I will contact the Unspeakables and see if they can help. Also, see if Professor Babbling or Professor Vector can help, as they are the most experienced with Rituals. In the meantime, Harry, the Morphine needs an hour to affect your whole body, so I suggest you sit… lay tight. Lauren here will accompany you for now. I will be making Floo calls if you need anything."

With that, she went into her office and Professor Flitwick headed towards the doors. Before leaving, he had one final thing to say: "Lauren, tell him about Ravenclaw and our rules and such. When I come back, I expect to not have to give him the introduction all over again."

Lauren nodded and sat in a chair by the bed. "Well" she began, "You already know that I'm Lauren Ellwood, from Nottinghamshire, which is a minor Wizarding area. I'm the Lady of Ravenclaw, because of the reinstated tradition this year because of the Triwizard. I'm for all intents and purposes the Head of Ravenclaw, while Professor Flitwick is the… well, I guess you could call him the counselor. Basically, I handle everyday Ravenclaw stuff, while he handles special stuff like you defecting to Ravenclaw." She smiled. "By the way, welcome to Ravenclaw. You'll love being a Ravenclaw if you like learning. Oh, and it seems lke your grades are only slightly above average. Why?"

Harry was going to admit something he hadn't told anyone, ever. "Well, I purposely held myself back. My former friends Ron and Hermione tend to get jealous whenever I do better than them. I really should be about 4th in my year, by my calculations. Instead, I'm in the 20s because I hold myself back. I won't hold back anymore. After all, Ravenclaw is all about learning, isn't it?

Lauren just looked at him sternly. "In Ravenclaw, you have to try your best. Got it? Now, let's talk. In Ravenclaw, like I said, you try your best. We have our own library in Ravenclaw Tower. However, most Ravenclaws understand that books aren't always true. We use our wisdom to question things and investigate. Unlike your friend Granger, who seems to worship books and thinks they can never be wrong. We also maintain a mostly neutral stance towards the House rivalry, but since so many Ravenclaws are Pureblood, including myself, we gravitate more towards Slytherin. Not that we're blood purists; it's just that most Heirs are in Slytherin or Ravenclaw."

"Now, your new year-mates will be Heir Terry Boot of the Ancient and Noble House of Boot, Michael Corner of the Minor House of Corner, Anthony Goldstein of the Ancient House of Goldstein, Kevin Entwhistle who is Muggleborn, Stephen Cornfoot, a Half-Blood from a branch line of the House of Runcorn, Mandy Brocklehurst, a Muggleborn, Su Li of the Most Ancient and Esteemed Chinese House of Li, Padma Patil of the Most Ancient and Respected Indian House of Patil, Lisa Turpin, a Half Blood from the House of Turpin, and Lily Moon of the Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Moon. You will be introduced as Harry James Potter of the Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter. You may be Heir to more than that, as are a few in Hogwarts, because of the First Blood War. It's advised that ou find out. By the way, why aren't you wearing your Heir ring?"

Harry explained. "I only found out about the Wizengamot last week, when I got a letter from my family solicitors. I'm due to have a meeting with them this Saturday. Then, presumably, I'll be able to find out more."

Lauren asked "Do you need me to explain the Wizengamot?" At Harry's nod, she started the impromptu history lesson. "Around a thousand years ago, the Four Founders, Merlinus Ambrosius, and Morgana got together and created the Council of Magick. The Council of Magick was a council of the ten oldest families in Britain at the time, namely Moon, Nott, Lestrange, Bones, Potter, Longbottom, Greengrass, Black, Weasley, and Prewett. You should recognize all the names since most, if not all, have Heirs at Hogwarts. The reason none of the lines have gone extinct is because of a Family Magick that prevents the family from dying out. It was this magic which protected you that night; that and your mother. The magic protects the last member of the family with all of its power and that is why you survived."

"The Council is still running today, although the blood traitor Weasleys broke an oath about 300 years back, causing them to be replaced by the Malfoys, a family of Anglo-Saxon origin that came in the 1300s and has been insufferable ever since. If the Malfoy family is disgraced, the seat goes to the rightful holders, the Watsons, my mother's family. That's why my whole family was killed in the First Blood War. My family is matriarchal, which means that if the fucking Malfoys are disgraced like they deserve to be for bribing their way on, I get the seat for my family." She growled.

"My family is and was next in line to be added on the Council, however, after those _blood traitor_ Weasleys got booted off, the Malfoys bribed their way onto then my family was passed by for the seat. Now, I'm the last of my family, since the Malfoys killed my family off under 'mysterious' circumstances and the family after mine in line are the Rosiers, a well-known ally of the Malfoys. Luckily, I avoided being killed, otherwise, the Rosiers would have been next in line."

"But that's for another time. After the Council of Magick was founded, they formed the Ministry of Magic and the Wizengamot. The Ministry is the government while the Wizengamot is akin to the Muggle Parliament, in that there is a House of Lords, with old families on it, and a House of Commons, with people on it who are either elected or appointed by the Ministry. The Wizengamot has 200 members in all, 100 in each. The House of Lords is, as the name says, a branch with old families in it from all over the former British Empire. The setup is that there are 70 Lords from old families here in Britain, 4 from Canada, 2 from Australia, 4 from the United States, 2 from India, 2 from Singapore, 2 from Hong Kong, 2 from New Zealand, 2 from South Africa, 6 from the other countries in Africa, 2 from the Caribbean, and 2 from Pakistan. Granted, these countries all have their own governments, but the Wizengamot has supreme authority, even over the other countries' Congress and Parliaments. We generally mind our own business, but once in a while, there's an issue that needs us to step in."

"Next is the House of Commons. The members are elected for 4 year terms every year, so 50 at a time are elected or reelected in. Given that the members are supposed to be from all over the country, it's interesting to note that most of the members are English. Also, there are 50 Purebloods, 30 Half-Bloods, and 20 Muggleborn in the House. Nobody can interfere with the elections, which is why it's not completely Purebloods. Not that people haven't tried."

"That's basically all you need to know. Oh, and the Council is supreme to the Wizengamot and can override it. And, only the Council can make laws pertaining to itself, so if you're part of it, you basically don't have to follow Ministry law at all. Finally, the Four Founders have honorary seats on the Council, as the Lords of England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales, but nobody has ever claimed them, since the bloodlines have all but died out. That's all you need to know about the Wizengamot, until you join it."

"The Ministry is the government, with a Minister appointed by the Wizengamot. That is currently Minister Fudge, who has been serving since 1990 when he replaced Bagnold. His 5 year term is nearly over, at least it will be in July during the Summer Solstice when the Wizengamot will decide whether to let him stay or appoint another. The Minister runs the Ministry, which has nine major departments:

-The Department of Magical Law Enforcement, or the DMLE, which is the largest and most important; Amelia Bones, Lady Bones of the Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Bones is the Head of the DMLE currently, which enforces Ministry law.

-The Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes, or the D-MAC, which is the department which deals with secrecy in the Wizarding World. Whenever there's an accident or catastrophe or an incident that involves Muggles, they're the ones at the scene. Amycus Rosier is the Head.

-The Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, or the DMC is the department which deals with magical creatures. It's rather small, and not very important, as everyone generally leaves magical creatures to their own devices. George Macmillan is the Head of this Department.

-The Department of Magical Education, or the D-Ed, deals with Hogwarts, OWLS, NEWTS, and those trying to get a Mastery. Griselda Marchbanks, an Elder on the Wizengamot, is Head. They're generally a decent lot, and when they come to Hogwarts for the OWLS and NEWTS, they're always pretty decent. The Board of Governors is also technically part of this department.

-The Department of International Magical Cooperation, or the D-Int, deals with foreign relations and our seats on the ICW. Barty Crouch got shunted over to Head of this Department when his DMLE methods proved to be too extreme. Also, Dumbledore is technically part of this department and D-Ed due to his positions.

-The Department of Magical Transportation, or the DMT, are the people who deal with Portkeys, Floo, Apparation, Brooms, and all that stuff. They're generally considered as mildly important, as they manage the transportation systems. Victoria Edgecombe is Head of this Department.

-The Department of Records, or D-Rec, is the department which manages records, inheritance, wills, documents, files, and everything pertaining to records. It also keeps records of laws that the Wizengamot passes. This department is generally very important, as everything, from births to deaths to OWL and NEWT scores to Wills are in this department. This is where you go for an Inheritance test. This department is very close to Gringotts, the DMLE, and the Wizengamot. Albert Moon is the Head.

-The Department of Magical Games and Sports, or D-MGS, is the department that manages Quidditch, Gobstones, Quodpot, and all the other games and sports. It also has the duty of managing the Triwizard this year in collaboration with D-Int and D-Ed. Ludo Bagman is the Head.

-The Department of Mysteries, or the DoM is the department shrouded in the most secrecy. Algeron Croaker is the Head, and he is almost never seen in public. Members of this department are called Unspeakables. They do experiments and research with Magic and a lot of other things. They have to recruit you and they only take the best.

…and that's all the departments in the Ministry." Lauren finished. "Together, the Heads form the Ministerial Cabinet, which are the Minister's advisors. Notice that all the department heads are Light or Grey oriented. Only one is even suspected of being Dark, and that's Amycus Rosier. That's because Dumbledore made sure that, after the First Blood War, the Department Head requirements were much more stringent. Granted, there are still a lot of Dark-oriented people in the Ministry, but they're a minority. There are also smaller offices and committees in the Ministry that aren't part of any Department such as the Minister's Office where he and his staff work and the Public Relations Office, which manages public relations. But, those aren't important." She finished. "Do you understand everything I told you? I know it can be a lot to process at once."

Harry had never learned so much in his life and liked it. "Yes. So the Potters are one of the Founding Families?"

"Yes" Lauren conrirmed. "And my family will be too once someone gets booted off the Council."

"So how do I go about obtaining my Lordship?" he asked interestedly.

"Well, you have to be seventeen to claim it, or you have to be emancipated. For families with an incumbent Lord you have to wait until he dies, which, in the Wizarding World, can take quite a while. That's why most Lords are old men. Or, like a lot of families, once the incumbent Lord turns, say, a hundred, he can retire and pass the Lordship on. Because of the War, though, there are a lot of younger Lords right now, which helps in getting more… liberal reforms through. For you, when you're emancipated, which you probably are right now. I mean, you have to be of age to compete in the Triwizard, and your name came out, and two department heads, three heads of schools, the Chief Warlock, and the Supreme Mugwump all recognized you as having to compete, which means they effectively emancipated you. Granted, three of those positions are the same person, but you're still probably legally emancipated." She explained.

Harry suddenly remembered the letter. "Yes, I am actually. That's why my family solicitors wanted to meet me tomorrow." He confirmed.

"Well, don't let me keep you for too long. If you're going to be drinking a Flushing Potion and going through an Unbinding Ritual, you need your rest. Particularly if you're going to Hogsmeade to meet your solicitor tomorrow. Good… Morning!" she said brightly and then left.

Harry just shook his head and laid back on the bed. He pondered what she had told him until Madam Pomfrey came in an hour later.

"Now, we're going to be doing quite a complex ritual. Professor Flitwick and the other teachers will be coming in a minute. We will have to move you to the center of the ritual room in the Runes wing. But before that I need to give you the Flushing Potion, as the potions in you can have nasty effects when combined with a ritual." She handed him a vial. "Drink up! Make sure you don't drop the vial. It will hurt a lot, but I know about your pain tolerance."

Harry gingerly took the vial and downed it in one gulp, setting the vial down on the bed as best as he could considering he was still tied up on the bed like a prisoner. It tasted very bitter but with a hint of sourness. His throat burned as he felt it go down and his stomach rebelled against it. Immediately, he began writhing as his body felt like it was being slit by hundreds of knives and then burned in a white-hot fire. It hurt more than anything he had ever felt. He tried to scream, but he had been silenced by Madam Pomfrey. He writhed against the bondage and tried to get free, but the restraints were too tight. He prayed for it to be over soon and mentally shuddered as he thought about what it would feel like if he didn't have such a high pain tolerance.

Suddenly, the burning stopped. He fell limp against the bed, exhausted. Madam Pomfrey came back in from the observation room. "It's lucky that I knew you would release magic when you went through this. The wave of magic you released was the biggest I've seen; it nearly destroyed the room!" As she undid the restraints, he lifted his head and looked around. Indeed, the whole room was in ruins because of the wave of magic. He suddenly had an idea. He concentrated on his magic and let it flow out into the room. It went around the room fixing everything, then dissipated into the air. He fainted, now even more exhausted and with no more magic in his core.

Madam Pomfrey was confident now; this boy didn't know his own power. She just had to measure the boy's magic to determine just how powerful he was. She cast the spell. "_Magicae Viraes_" she whispered. A number came up. She sighed, disappointed. The boy was not a sorcerer, but a simple mage. His magical strength was 520, out of a Merlin Index of 1000. While that was above the average of 400, it was still below the Sorcerer level of 750. Dumbledore was a Sorcerer, along with Voldemort. Neither was a special type of sorcerer, though, like the Sorcerers of old. Harry would grow to be around 600 when he was an adult, but nothing like a Sorcerer. She suddenly slapped herself on the head. Of course! The bindings on him! They would also restrict his strength, making him more powerful than even the reading showed! And by the looks of it, he was an Elemental, able to display and will his magic into anything just by focusing on what he wanted. She sighed and went to contact Professor Flitwick. She needed to see about that ritual.

* * *

><p>AN- Just to clarify, Harry's name came out of the Goblet on October 31, 1994, which is a Tuesday. He is going into Ravenclaw and going through the Ritual on Friday, since that's the day that McGonagall could meet with him. Right now it is Friday morning as far as the story goes. Sorry for the confusion!

A/N 2- Sorry about the huge information dump. I thought it wise to get the information out at the beginning rather than later. Also, sorry for the huge chapter. Next chapter will be more organized and less busy.

Next: The Unbinding Ritual and Meeting with the Solicitor.


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